The present disclosure pertains generally to adjustable merchandising systems for shelving. More specifically, the present disclosure pertains to locks/fasteners for securing a front rail to wire shelving.
Shelving is used extensively for stocking and storing products or merchandise in a variety of stores. For a number of important merchandising considerations, it is desirable that merchandise be displayed at the front of a shelf so that a customer is induced to purchase the article. For example if the goods are perishable or are subject to becoming stale (e.g., cigarettes, fruit juices, dairy products or any item with an expiration date or a freshness date), it is important that the articles be removed in a first in, first out basis in order to maintain freshness. Also, if merchandise is not displayed at the front of the shelf, it may not catch the shopper's eye which may cost the merchant sales.
In order to automatically move an item forward on a shelf as the one before it is removed, several types of forward feed devices have been devised. These devices generally fall into three categories. The first category is inclined tracks. These rely on gravity to feed, slide or roll products forward. The second category employs conveyor belts which still use gravity to effect a forward movement. The third category uses spring biased paddles to feed the product forward. Whichever forward feed mechanism is employed, it is necessary that the front of the shelf be provided with a barrier or fence, so that the merchandise urged forward does not fall off the shelf.
Commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/625,305 discloses a variety of fasteners for securing a front rail to a shelf having a plurality of perforations. In U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/625,305, the fasteners are formed integrally with the front rail element such that the front rail is easily secured to the shelf without the need for separate fastener elements.